The road to bodybuilding: The story of Kristine Finsas

When I was going to meet Kristine Finsas, I was intimidated by the pictures I had seen online of the tall, muscular, and confidant woman. As an independent personal trainer in Shanghai and Bodyfitness competition champion, Kristine is in peak physical condition.

We met at one of the healthiest restaurant in Shanghai, and it turned out that she had one of the warmest, most genuine personalities that I had ever encountered. When Kristine moved to China to pursue a career in fashion nearly a decade ago, she never thought that she would become one of the top female Figure competitors in the world.

After moving to Shanghai in 2005 to pursue a job in fashion production, her university major, she grew disillusioned with the industry and the negative energy surrounding it. After joining a local gym and winning a female muscle gain competition hosted there, Kristine realized bodybuilding was something she enjoyed and was very good at.

She continued her training, and at her first competition four years ago, the Olympia Amateur Asia, she took the overall gold medal. This has led to many more competitive appearances, becoming a certified pro, and a recent 4th place finish at her second professional competition at the ProPittsburgh competition.

In addition to her competitions, Kristine is a high-end personal trainer in Shanghai. She takes on only a few clients in order to maximize the attention and dedication that she can give to them. Her goal is the success of every client, and having a smaller number of clients allows her to truly pursue this.

Kristine’s routine consists of getting up at 4am to prepare for early clients. In addition to serving her clients, she works out 3 days in a row and then rests for one. She will tailor her workouts based upon the feedback from the judges in her previous competition. For instance, last competition she was told to improve her back, so her upcoming workouts will likely include more dumbell flys and rows. Because of this, every preparation for a show is very different, and she must adapt her approach every time.

You would think that the workouts are the most important factor in winning these competition, but according to Kristine it is the diet. Her diet is completely sugar-free, which also means no fruits! Counting calories is also an important part of the routine and is what allows her to have the figure that she does. The lack of fat and carbs, especially leading up to a competition, can leave these athletes with little energy. To augment her diet and make up for lack of energy, Kristine takes supplements that include multivitamins, minerals, and L-Luceine. She also takes probiotics and digestive enzymes to help replenish nutrients missing from her diet. These supplements are integral to her training and allow her to be a champion in professional competition.

To supplement her diet and make up for some missing nutrients, Kristine takes supplements that include cod liver oil, multivitamins, minerals, protein powder, BCAAs, glutamine, and L-Luceine. She also takes probiotics and digestive enzymes for healthy digestion. These supplements are integral to her training and allow her to train like the professional athlete she is and hopefully bring her to the very top. She’s currently 2 weeks out from her 3rd professional competition, the 2018 Vancouver Pro Show July 7th

Even if you break your diet one time don’t give up! One mistake is easy to recover from and make up for. However, if you let one mistake turn into two and then three, then your diet will begin to fail. Kristine also reminds us that this is the only body we have and to treat it like the treasure that it is. Food is so important because it literally makes up who you are. The fact that more nutritional products and healthy options are entering the Chinese market is a good thing, as it will encourage people to be healthier overall.